Cheers to the better Days
by LisbethMegalomania
Summary: Sirius had a little too much fun after graduating, and Hermione has to learn the hard way that being a witch isn't all that easy when you're also a Black.
1. Just a Child

**September 1990**

Hermione Granger was a smart girl, her teachers awarded her extra points on all of her tests, and her mother had once told her, that one day she would attend an excellent university. Indeed, the girl with those unruly curls, that seemed to have a life on their own was quite proud of herself.

On this particularly sunny morning, Hermione had celebrated her eleventh birthday and what a grand celebration it had been. Her parents had surprised Hermione with a trip to the planetarium she could never visit on her own because it was so far away from their house. After that, they had bought a few new books together and a big backpack to carry them all in. Hermione thought it was the prettiest bag she had ever seen in her life.

"Hermione, love – could you come down for a second?" Hermione looked up from the new book she was reading, marking the page she was currently on before walking downstairs to where her mother was waiting.

"What is it, mum?" She asked when she spotted Mrs Granger sitting next to Hermione's father in the living room, the two of them looking quite distracted by something laying on the table in front of them.

"Sit down love, your father, and I have to tell you something." Her mother began, and Hermione eagerly sat down in the comfortable seat across from the pair.

"This letter here has just arrived." Her mother handed Hermione a very fancy looking envelope with a red wax seal on the back.

"It's for you. No matter what you make of all of this we'll always support you, love." Her father spoke up, his serious voice causing Hermione to look up. Her mother gestured for her to open the mysterious letter and the young girl proceeded to carefully break the seal, curious to see what her parents were so worried about.

"We received a similar letter yesterday, this is a very serious matter, my love." Anxious about its content, Hermione pulled the letter from the fancy envelope and read it over.

"Dear Miss Black, we are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry?" She read out loud, frowning at the unfamiliar name.

"Who's this Miss Black they're talking about?" She asked, confusion written all over her face. Her mother took a deep breath, her pale hands tightly wrapped around her husband's own.

"You are, love." She felt as if someone had ripped their old rug from under her chair and swallowed her whole. Hermione Granger was a smart girl; she knew what her mother was telling her.

"I'm…adopted?" she asked, tears threatening to fall from her amber eyes that looked so different from her parent's own pale ones.

"We wanted to tell you when you were a little older but now with you receiving that letter…" Her father began, but Hermione interrupted him,

"So you're not my real parents?"

"No, but you're still our daughter dear, and nothing will ever change that fact." Mrs Granger said while leaning forward and pulling her little girl into a tight embrace. Hermione immediately returned the hug, recognising that her parents were telling the truth. They loved her, and that was enough for her.

"I know Mum, I love you too. Both of you." She murmured, still refusing to let her Mother get up again. Hermione Granger was a determined child. She would make sure to learn as much about this Hogwarts School as she could and make her parents proud by becoming the brightest student the school has ever had…

* * *

On the other side of London, the furious screeching of one Madame Black could be heard through the entire house. Her greying hair threatening to spill from her carefully arranged hairdo, the woman traced her spindly fingers over the new name below the burned spot where the face of her oldest son had once been.

"Kreacher, summon my father-in-law immediately!" She hissed at the cowering elf trailing behind her, the creature deeply bowing to his Mistress once, before vanishing with the snap of his finger. Walburga Black felt anger overwhelming every other clear thought in her mind, the name of her supposed granddaughter burning itself into the back of her head.

"How dare that filthy, muggle-loving traitor-" She started, her breath hitching when her eyes wandered over to the portrait of her younger son.

"Why couldn't she have been yours, how is this worthless boy still bringing shame to our noble house after so many years?" Still deep in thought, the seething woman nearly missed the expectant cough from the elderly wizard leaning on his intricately carved staff at the entrance of the room.

"What did your elf summon me for Walburga, I don't have all day." His pale eyes wandered over the dishevelled form of the upset woman, taking in her tangled hair and scarlet cheeks. It was rare to see a lady of her standing in such an exceptionally state of disarray.

"Arcturus; come and see for yourself what that useless son of mine has done now." She pointed at the spot below Sirius Black's name and his interest piqued the older Black stepped forward.

"How come she's just appeared now?" He asked once he had spotted the new addition to their family tree.

"That's your first question?" Mrs Black asked incredulously, but Arcturus Black just tutted at the angry woman, not appreciating the tone she was using while addressing the head of the family. She immediately pulled herself back together, drawing her wand and fixing her hair before turning back to the older wizard. Even though her father-in-law was well into his nineties the man did not look a day over sixty-five, his dark hair neatly pulled back by a velvet bow and his face free from the usual marks of time except for the deep creases around his eyes and mouth.

"They must have hidden her trace. The ministry recently registered every magical child heading for Hogwarts this year." Mrs Black spoke, sounding rather calm and collected now. Mr Black Sr. nodded, trying to recall where he had heard the girl's mother's name again.

"Wasn't her mother's family killed during one of the raids?" Walburga Black asked, unknowingly answering the older Black's question.

"Indeed, I remember reading about the McKinnon's in the papers." He said thoughtfully, his eyes wandering over the name of his great-granddaughter. Mrs Black crossed her arms at his words and pursed her lips before speaking up again.

"Not a mudblood at least. I couldn't bear the thought of any more filth tainting the name of our great house." Mr Black nodded in agreement, stepping away from the wall and heading towards the fireplace on the other side of the room.

"The McKinnon's weren't part of the sacred twenty-eight, but it's better than nothing I suppose." The wizard stated, clearly not impressed with his grandson's choice for the mother of his granddaughter. Walburga followed the man to the other end of the room, curious about what he was planning now.

"What are we going to do? She belongs here, who would dare to hide a Black?" She asked, feeling anger once again welling up in her chest. Her father-in-law turned around, his pale eyes locking with her amber ones.

"We'll bring her back of course." And with that, he threw some floo powder into the fireplace and stepped into the green flames.

"Ministry of Magic." He spoke clearly, before vanishing and Mrs Black eagerly followed the man, ready to wreak havoc on whoever dared to oppose the noble and ancient house of Black, even going so far as hiding the daughter of its previous heir...

* * *

"No! Get away from me! Mum, Dad, please wake up." A young girl's frightened voice echoed through the dark house. Scarcely clad in one of her old pyjamas Hermione Granger struggled to get out of the older man's grip while she helplessly watched the hissing woman point a thin stick at her parent's immobile forms. Her father's mouth was opened wide as if he was calling after his sobbing daughter.

"Stop struggling girl, all will be explained once we get home, Walburga come!" The scary man grumbled, his hand on her wrist tightening after he felt her pulling her legs back to escape his bruising grip.

"The audacity of that man. Filthy, disgusting Muggles!" The woman in the dark robes screeched, the pointy thing in her right hand still glowing dangerously in the darkness. Hermione craned her neck to see what the woman was doing to her parents but her other captor suddenly pulled her closer to him, and before she could protest, the world around her grew blurry. She felt as if her insides were being turned upside down and forcefully shut her eyes, hoping to get rid of the nauseous feeling in her stomach. When Hermione opened them again, she found herself standing in the dimly lit corridor of an old house, her hands tightly grabbing the older man's burgundy robes. Hastily pulling away from her captor, she nearly stumbled over her own feet as he unexpectedly let go of her as well.

"Where am I?" She asked, cold fear settling in her weary bones.

"You will only speak when spoken to understand? Kreacher, serve us tea in the green room." The man spoke calmly, and Hermione felt as if she could not breathe. How could her life get so out of control in a few hours? Just before Dinner, she had been told that her parents had adopted her and now she was being held captive at the house of some old, scary man.

"My precious granddaughter, living with filthy muggles, fate is truly a cruel Mistress." The strange woman suddenly spoke up behind her and Hermione felt her heart skip a beat. Slowly she turned around to look up at the woman who had just called Hermione her granddaughter. No, her life was not going well at all…

* * *

 **Found this half-finished story in one of my old folders…I'll** update **as often as I can…check out my other story – The place we call home**

 **This story is going to be quite dark and unhappy in the beginning. Walburga wasn't known for her nurturing and loving nature towards her own children so I don't believe for a second that she'd do a 180 with Hermione. The only Blacks from the previous Generations still alive are Walburga and Arcturus...To answer one** readers **comment: Canon Books characters like Sirius & Andromeda are still alive and kicking as well of course xoxo**


	2. Toujours Pur

**September 1990**

"As a member of this house, you're expected to behave accordingly, so no more crying, understood?" The scary woman scowled at the girl's tear-streaked face. Still dressed in nothing but her flimsy pyjamas, the fire at the back of the room did little to warm Hermione's shivering form. For what had felt like hours, she had been listening to the older man and woman who had taken her from her home, feeling the fear in her heart grow with every word that came out of their mouths.

"Please just let me go, I need to know if my parents are –" Before she could finish, the haughty woman sitting across from her sat up and pointed her wand at the distraught girl.

"Don't you dare to call those muggles your family, you're Black, and you should be grateful that we took you back!" She exclaimed furiously, her threatening tone sending shivers down Hermione's spine.

"Walburga calm yourself, the child is clearly distressed, let Kreacher take her to Regulus' old room for now and let's continue this talk tomorrow." The patriarch of the house spoke, and Hermione watched Mrs Black take a couple of deep breaths before nodding in agreement.

"Fine, I'll oversee her atrocious behaviour for now, what else should we've expected from someone raised by muggles…Kreacher!" Hermione let out a startled yelp when the house elf appeared beside his Mistress. She was tired from everything that had happened, but the thought of having to stay with those strange people kept her from giving into her exhaustion.

Turning her head towards the door, she contemplated if she could make it to the front door fast enough to call for help, but when she looked back to her two captors, she found the older Black's calculating gaze on her.

"Take Hermione up to Regulus' room, and lock the door, my precious granddaughter is not in her right mind right now." He spoke, and the creature looked at Hermione with wide eyes, something akin to awe written over his wrinkled features.

"Kreacher will take good care of the young Miss, he'll make sure that she stays in Master Regulus' room." Petrified Hermione felt the creature's bony hands grab her wrist before she felt the same nauseating sensation from before and suddenly found herself standing in a dark room, the creature from before nowhere to be seen.

"How- This has to be a dream; I need to wake up." She whispered quietly to herself, before dashing towards the high door, feverishly pulling on the golden handle. When it didn't budge, she let out a frustrated yell and proceeded to bang her hands on the hard wood until she felt blood running from her bruised knuckles.

"Please let me out! I beg you, please I just want to go home!" Her calls were met with silence. After a while, her throat burning from her exasperated cries for help, all her remaining strength left her body as she slid down to the floor. With fresh tears clouding her blurry vision, Hermione leaned her head back on the cold wood of the door, finally giving in to her exhaustion. She felt her consciousness slip away and a few seconds later the young witch had fallen into a restless slumber on the faded rug …

* * *

Downstairs, Arcturus Black took another sip from his whiskey, enjoying the silence that had followed after the girl had finally stopped wasting her breath. His daughter-in-law stopped her agitating pacing, and he watched as she pinched her nose, trying to collect herself before speaking up again.

"She's definitely got spirit; we need to be careful, or else we've got ourselves another Sirius." He told the dark-haired witch.

"I'll not fail again, I was much too lenient with that boy, seeing as he was my first." Mrs Black said, determined to make a proper Black out of the girl. Arcturus watched her for a few seconds before inclining his head, showing his approval of whatever the woman thought was best to make his great-granddaughter a part of the family.

"Do as you wish Walburga, I'll return to my own estate in a few days and leave everything else to you, failure is not an option." The woman standing a few feet away from his seat nodded grimly, the flickering fire in the room casting dark shadows over her gaunt face.

"What about that useless son of mine? Maybe those ten years in that awful prison have made him regain some of his senses again." Arcturus put his glass away and thoughtfully folded his hands.

"No, he'll take her with him and ruin her like Andromeda did with her own daughter." Walburga hissed at the mention of her niece's name.

"The ministry will give her to him if he ever gets out, he is after all her father." He murmured darkly while staring into the dying embers in the grand fireplace across the room.

"No, for now, we'll raise her. A son would've been preferable, but this will have to do for now." After all those years of being certain, that the Name of the most noble and ancient House of Black would die with his grandson, the girl came as their saving grace and Arcturus Black would be damned to have this chance taken from him...


	3. Family

**September 1990**

"You'll not mention your upbringing to anyone, understood?" Her grandmother asked Hermione with a stern gaze, and she felt as if someone had slapped her. She had been held against her will at Grimmauld Place for three days now, and every attempt to escape had ended with her being dragged back to that dark room by Kreacher.

Hermione's captors had ordered her to refer to them as grandmother and grandfather and after showing Hermione her portrait on the expansive family-tree her last hopes of this all just being a big misunderstanding had died in her throat.

Apparently, she was the daughter of one Sirius Black, who much to the girl's horror, was currently imprisoned in a place called Azkaban for murdering twelve muggles. When she had asked about her supposed mother, Arcturus Black had told her about her and her entire family's demise with an unmoving face that still sent shivers down Hermione's back when she thought back to it. She still could not believe that her parents had fought in a war and even worse, had sided with the wrong people as her grandmother had put it.

"If someone asks where you've been, you'll tell them that you've been living with Arcturus." Hermione tried to refocus her attention back to her grandmother's rambling, already having learned the hard way what happened when she didn't listen to her every word. On her second day with her new family, she had been distracted by something, and the next thing she remembered was the burning pain on her cheek where her grandmother's hand had connected with her face. She was shell-shocked by the woman's treatment of her supposed granddaughter and had feared the woman's temper ever since. The more Hermione learned about the wizarding world and being a witch, the more appalled she was.

"You're a Black now if someone dares to question you, tell your grandfather or me, understood?" At the mention of the older Black's name, Hermione thought back to the day before when the man had bid his farewell to return to his own home, leaving Hermione alone with the mad woman. He was strict, yes, but he didn't scare the young girl nearly as much as Walburga did.

"Yes, grandmother." She answered when the woman looked at her expectantly, not wanting to provoke her again. The sooner she could leave the dining table they were currently sitting at, the better. Hermione had to study the most ridiculous etiquettes, seeing as the wizarding world had lots of its own strange traditions and mannerisms. Like always waiting for the house elves to present everyone with a wet cloth to clean one's hands or never finishing one's meal, as it was seen as an insult to the host. She looked down at her own plate and wondered if every magical family had such elaborate dinner's every night because to her it just all seemed so pointless.

"Good, you may retire to your room and read some of the books I gave you." Grateful to finally get away from the scary woman, Hermione practically jumped from her seat and excused herself before hurrying back to her room. Even though it was a little too gloomy for her taste and had evidently belonged to a young boy before, Hermione felt safe there. Walburga never came into that room, instead sending Kreacher to fetch the girl.

* * *

Closing the heavy door behind her, she instantly felt some of the tension that tent to build up her neck and shoulders during her conversations with her grandmother, leaving her body. Grimacing, she forcefully pulled at her tight braid until she felt the charm that Walburga put on it every morning to keep it in place, fade away. After a few seconds of tugging on the delicate bow, she felt her wild curls finally fall back onto her shoulders, making Hermione feel a little more like herself again.

She hated that those people could take her away from home only because they were related to her. Hermione hated that she wasn't allowed to even mention her parents, just because they were what Walburga called muggles, which was apparently something terrible.

"I'll find a way to get away from this place, I just have to be strong." She told herself while sitting down at the desk standing right below one of the tall windows in her room.

Hermione Granger was a brave girl, her parents had taught her to stand up to those mean bullies at her school, and this was no different than that. Her two captors were just some big, and admittedly scary bullies but she would not give up. No, she would prepare as best as she could for Hogwarts, and once she learned some spells she would leave this horrible place…

"I just have to be strong for a few more months…"

* * *

 **Nothing really new just yet...just changed some typos. Walburga married her own cousin…They literally had the same surname…Why…Imagine finding out, that not only you're adopted and a witch on top of that but your real family is also super fudged up and you don't even realise to what extent cause they're telling you, their view is the right one…Add to that, that your father is imprisoned for life and your mother is gone as well…damn I'd be so ready to just leave for Hogwarts…oh well, thanks for all the follows and reviews xoxo**


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